In 1945, Lieutenant Alene B. Duerk, registered nurse, stood on the deck of the USS Beneoolence, one of the Navy's large hospital ships. It had taken many years of hard work for her to become a capable nurse and an independent woman, as her mother had hoped. Now she was headed for the coast of Japan in a fleet of 600 ships. It was wartime, and the future looked uncertain. But Alene Duerk's dedication would lead to a long and productive career with...

Features female figures of black history, including abolitionist Sojourner Truth, pilot Bessie Coleman, chemist Alice Ball, politician Shirley Chisholm, mathematician Katherine Johnson, poet Maya Angelou, and filmmaker Julie Dash.

Presents the lives of women creators throughout history, including profiles of Ada Lovelace, Bessie Blount Griffin, Yayoi Kosama, and Calypso Rose.

Introduces trailblazing women who have shaped history and culture, including Kathrine Switzer, Mae Jemison, and Diane von Furstenberg.